Hebrews 1:9

Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

Speaking to the Son, the Father says something very revealing: “You have loved righteousness and hated iniquity.”Because of that, He says, “You are anointed with the oil of gladness above all others.”

There is a simple principle here that many people miss.

Gladness is directly connected to holiness.

Happiness and holiness go together.

You see this clearly when you look at Jesus. Isaiah calls Him “a man of sorrows” (Isaiah 53:3), and that is certainly true. He carried grief. He bore the weight of the world’s sin. But when you read the Gospels, you also notice something else.

There was a joy about Him.

People were drawn to Him. Crowds gathered around Him. Children ran toward Him, not away from Him. There was a warmth, a gladness, a life about Jesus that made people want to be near Him.

Holiness did not make Him distant.

It made Him attractive.

The same principle still holds true today. Many people assume the opposite. They imagine holiness to be heavy, gloomy, and restrictive. They think if they pursue righteousness their happiness will disappear and they will simply have to endure the burdens of faith.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Holiness does not drain joy from life.

It produces it.

To the extent that you choose to pursue righteousness is the extent to which you will discover real happiness. And to the extent that you compromise with sin is the extent to which joy slowly fades.

It really is that simple.

The oil of gladness flows where righteousness is loved and iniquity is rejected.